Carter's blast sparks Warriors past Eagles

Published: Saturday, March 30, 2013 at 01:31 AM.

Carter was 2-for-2 with five RBI. Garret Hodge went 2-for-3 with three runs scored and Trey Pierce was 3-for-4 with a pair of RBI.

That run support proved to be all Warriors pitcher Brock Deatherage would need, as the junior settled into a comfort zone after allowing a run in each the first and third innings.

Brock Deatherage pitched out of a jam after giving up a single to Walters and an RBI double to Zack Littell to start the third inning. But Deatherage, making his second start of the season, retired the next three batters and when he took the mound for the fourth inning, he found his groove.

“We scored a lot of runs and I tried to build off of that,” Brock Deatherage said. “I was going out there with a lead and I was comfortable, I didn’t have any worries.”

He pitched into the sixth inning, going 5 1/3 and allowing five hits to go along with five strikeouts, exceeding Huff’s expectations.

“We were hoping Brock could give us three to four innings (Friday) and he pitched into the sixth, which was huge,” Huff said, “because that gives us some pitching for (tonight).”

Deatherage faced trouble in the fifth inning when Cody Curry singled to begin the frame. After Curry advanced to second on a passed ball, a heads up play from shortstop Breydan Gorham erased any threats.

GRAHAM — With Kevin Burns coming up with a big hit in front of him, Western Alamance’s Jay Carter figured he would see a fastball on the first pitch from Eastern Alamance pitcher Ridge Eaton.

Carter wasn’t wrong, and he jumped on the first pitch for a two-out, three-run home run.

It was a third-inning blast over the left field fence that spurred the Warriors to an 11-2 rout of Eastern Alamance in a semifinal game of the Graham Boosters Easter Tournament on Friday at Tom Zachary Field in Graham.

Western Alamance (11-2) moves into a matchup at 7 tonight against Southeast Guilford, which defeated Western Guilford 14-1 in Friday’s nightcap.

“I was just looking for a fastball that I could see and if it was a good pitch,” Carter said. “I wasn’t going to chase anything. If I saw anything I liked, I was going to hit it.”

Carter’s blast followed a battling at-bat by Burns, who was in a 0-2 hole before hitting a single between Eastern Alamance third baseman Matt Pate and shortstop Blake Walters. Burns’ seeing-eye grounder knocked in Blake Deatherage from second base, giving the Warriors their first lead at 3-2.

“Kevin Burns is a guy whose hand-eye coordination is great, he hardly ever swings and misses,” Western Alamance coach Lance Huff said. “So he fights it off and then gives Jay the opportunity to come up and hit the big ball with two men on.”

Carter was 2-for-2 with five RBI. Garret Hodge went 2-for-3 with three runs scored and Trey Pierce was 3-for-4 with a pair of RBI.

That run support proved to be all Warriors pitcher Brock Deatherage would need, as the junior settled into a comfort zone after allowing a run in each the first and third innings.

Brock Deatherage pitched out of a jam after giving up a single to Walters and an RBI double to Zack Littell to start the third inning. But Deatherage, making his second start of the season, retired the next three batters and when he took the mound for the fourth inning, he found his groove.

“We scored a lot of runs and I tried to build off of that,” Brock Deatherage said. “I was going out there with a lead and I was comfortable, I didn’t have any worries.”

He pitched into the sixth inning, going 5 1/3 and allowing five hits to go along with five strikeouts, exceeding Huff’s expectations.

“We were hoping Brock could give us three to four innings (Friday) and he pitched into the sixth, which was huge,” Huff said, “because that gives us some pitching for (tonight).”

Deatherage faced trouble in the fifth inning when Cody Curry singled to begin the frame. After Curry advanced to second on a passed ball, a heads up play from shortstop Breydan Gorham erased any threats.

Gorham ranged to his right on a grounder hit by Littell, aggressively pump faked a throw to first and threw to second baseman Patrick Hinshaw, who tagged out Curry. The sophomore shortstop also recorded the final out of the inning, again going to his right to field a grounder from Eaton.

“I’d love to take credit for that, but I didn’t teach him that. He did that on his own,” Huff said of Gorham’s heady play. “That’s just kind of a spark that ignites us and keeps us going.”

Its affect was immediate, when Western Alamance padded its lead with three runs in the bottom of the fifth, getting a sacrifice fly from Carter and an RBI single from Pierce.

Justin Garber finished on the mound, recording the last five outs. Four of those came via strikeouts, including three punchouts on called third strikes in the top of the seventh.

This was the second of at least three matchups between the Mid-State 3-A Conference foes, who will play again April 11. Western Alamance won the previous encounter 2-0.

Because Friday’s game doesn’t count toward league standings, the defeat offered somewhat of a saving grace for Eastern Alamance coach Randy Ballard.

But, mostly, Ballard was disappointed with the way his team folded after Western Alamance’s five-run third inning.

“Our problem is we’re not swinging the bats real well right now, we’re struggling there,” Ballard said. “Once they got a big lead I think our kids just kind of gave up and quit.”

-- DURHAM SCHOOL OF THE ARTS 7, BURLINGTON CHRISTIAN ACADEMY 6, 8 innings: Earlier in a consolation game at Graham, BCA’s Jonathan Cox struck out 17 without issuing a walk in a loss. The Royals committed six errors, including two that allowed the game-winning run in the top of the eighth inning.

Justin Morris went 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI and Josh Folwell went 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run for the Royals (2-8).

-- CHATHAM CENTRAL 15, GRAHAM 1, 5 innings: Also in a consolation game, Chatham Central notched eight runs in the first inning on the way to a blowout victory. Chatham Central outhit Graham 18-7. Josh Beam had two hits for Graham (2-8), including a double.